THEME OF THE MONTH: We will be embracing the theme of Commitment throughout the month of January. Commitment is an agreement or pledge to do something in the future. It is the state or quality of being dedicated to a cause or activity. In regard to our theme here at Hunking, with it being a new year, we are looking for students who are committed to working hard to either maintain or bring your grades up. We are looking for students who are committed to improving themselves both as students and all around people, and ultimately committing themselves to the mission of Hunking to be kind and respectful always. Staff will be on the lookout for students who best personify this theme throughout the month. 

Congratulations to all of the winners of the generosity award for December:

JANUARY BREAKFAST & LUNCH MENUS (If the links don’t work, you can visit www.fdmealplanner.com, and enter “Hunking” for the school location.)

COMMUNITY HAPPENINGS: 

Kindergarten Registration Kick Off and Pre K Resource Fair: 

ELT Preschool Resource Fair flyer English Spanish

Cornhole Flyer: 

Cornhole Tournament 2024 (1)

PTO NEWS: 

• The next PTO Meeting is scheduled for next Thursday, January 16th at 5:30om in the Hunking Conference Room! We’re always looking for new lower and upper school families to get involved!

NEWS FROM GUIDANCE

School Counselor: Terri Carney terri.carney@haverhill-ps.org

HHS Schedules for 8th Graders

Please see the attached scheduling letter.

(2025-2026) Class of 2029 Scheduling Letter (revised 1/9/25)

Classical Academy @HHS

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1aS2v8Z9isFje5yEageufqTI-_6Cj4lirMpv9GvAg7do/edit

Career Technical Education (CTE) @HHS  Deadline to apply: Feb 14

HHS Career Technical Education (CTE) Program: https://cte.haverhill-ps.org/  

Next Steps for HHS CTE, Classical Academy and various high school programs

Once a student has applied to the high school program of their choice, the next step is an interview which does not take place until Feb or March 2025. 

You will not hear anything until the interview schedule is posted. Thank you for your patience!

HHS CTE practice interview questions are available on the School Counseling google classroom and CTE posts them on their application page: https://cte.haverhill-ps.org/application-process/.

8th grade School Counseling google classroom code

Students, join the google classroom with: egta65o

Whittier: Apply here and find important dates! https://whittiertech.go2cte.com/ 

WVT does not release their interview questions. 

Work Permits: Find all the information needed to obtain a work permit here:

https://www.haverhill-ps.org/work-permit-information

EDUCATIONAL HAPPENINGS: 

Kindergarten: Students completed the i Ready math winter diagnostic this week. All will begin the reading diagnostic next week. Please make sure all chromebooks come to school charged. 

In science, we will begin learning about plant needs. Students will conduct investigations to see what happens when plants are given different amounts of water. 

Grade 8: In ELA students have completed reading excerpts from The Diary of Anne Frank and writing similar entries from the perspectives of either Margot Frank or Otto Frank.  They have also been introduced to the characters they will read about starting next week in Refugee by Alan Gratz. This dovetails in places with the topic of genocide which students have begun discussing and researching in Civics class.

Math classes have been continuing their work in solving linear variable equations and will begin graphing linear equations in the coming weeks. We have our next “District Benchmark” to look at student learning for Modules 3 and 4 at the end of the month. These are a great opportunity to see the progress that our students are making due to their hard work.

The next Invite a Grown-up will be specific to students who receive IEP academic services by Mrs. Iwatsuki or Mrs. Kelly. Look for a Google Form shared via Remind and save the date of Friday January 31st.

Health: 

The 8th grade has been learning about mental health, especially anxiety and depression . All 8th graders will be receiving a presentation from the NAN project this coming week. The NAN project is an organization which focuses on the mental health of young people with the purpose of bringing more awareness to dealing with depression and preventing suicide. Ms Curry and counselors will be on hand during the presentations. If you would like to learn more about the organization, go to thenanproject.org. 

The 7th grade has been learning about managing anger as part of our emotional health unit. 

The 6th grade has been learning about peer pressure and ways to refuse peer pressure and will be performing group skits to practice these skills. 

The 5th grade has been doing an extensive unit on bullying. We use the Boston vs Bullies program and for more information or to see the resources go to  bostonvsbullies.org. One class was fortunate to receive some wisdom from an 8th grade student, Jax Giarusso. Jax talked about the importance of treating each other with kindness and respect and that there is nothing cool about bullying someone. 

NEWS FROM ML team- The ACCESS test will start next week Monday January 13th to 24th. This is an English language proficiency test for students in grades K-12. The test monitors students’ progress in learning academic English. The test assesses students’ proficiency in the 4 language domains of listening, speaking, reading, and writing. Please have your children go to bed early, eat a healthy breakfast and encourage them to try their best. 

NEWS FROM OUR NURSES:  We will be starting Postural and scoliosis screening the week of January 20th for all 5th through 8th grade students. This screening is to check the spine for scoliosis and is required by the state. The screening requires the exposure of the student’s back for assessment so we request girls wear a sports bra for gym class. The screening is done in a private space and done during gym class.  If you would like your child to be opted out of this screening, a written note needs to be sent to the health office either by email or paper. We would also need a current physical showing the child was screened by his/her doctor for your child to opt out. If you have any questions or concerns, you may reach the health office at 978-420-1913. 

If you send your child in with a water bottle, please make sure it is not glass. 

Cold and flu season has arrived. Please make sure your child is wearing appropriate clothes for the weather and using good hand hygiene to prevent getting sick. Proper cough etiquette is important to keep from spreading germs so please sneeze or cough into your elbow or a tissue. 

ATHLETIC NEWS: 

Basketball: Both basketball teams sit at 4-1 with 3 games remaining prior to the playoffs. Both teams will be back in action this coming Thursday, 1/16/25 vs. Sacred Hearts right here at Hunking. The girls will play first. 

CLUB NEWS: 

Guitar Ensemble: The Hunking Guitar Ensemble is open to any students in grades 5-8. Students do not need prior experience or a guitar. We will meet on Friday afternoons from 2:45-3:30 (starting January 17th). For more information or if you have any questions, please contact Mrs Fairbrother. 

GRIT:  There is a GRIT meeting on Monday, Jan 13 until 4:30. We recently built Gingerbread houses to test their group skills on teamwork and communication. 

Mentor/Mentee: Lots of great relationship building has been happening between the mentors and mentees. Mentors meet once a week with their mentees.

Chorus: Happy New Year! Chorus will be resuming rehearsals starting Tuesday January 14th. Please see the January Calendar here: Jan 2025 Chorus Calendar

NJHS: The NJHS calendar can be found here.  

GSA: The calendar for the GSA can be found here. 

LEGO Club: The LEGO Club calendar can be found here. 

Art Club: STUDENTS IN 4TH GRADE ONLY: 

 January 9th, 16th, and 23rd  (3 – 3:50pm) pick up is at the Lower School Entrance. 

Student Council: Student Council Meeting Calendar can be found here.  

ODDS & ENDS: 

-Please make sure that your student(s) are coming to school daily with a fully charged chromebook. 

HPS has chosen School Device Coverage (SDC) to insure the Chromebooks that students have been issued. The cost of coverage for the year is $20 and includes accidental damage, loss, fire, and theft. As of right now, families have the option to sign up during the month of September (we will let you know if it extends). After sign up closes, only new students will be given a special code to sign up at registration. Our website explains SDC and has instructions on how to signing up online:

-Please make sure that you are sending your student(s) with a water bottle. We have a limited supply of cups and we do not have access to water fountains, only water bottle filling stations. 

SCHOOL POLICIES: Please click on the link below to review Hunking policies including cell phone, dress code, and pick up & drop off procedures: 

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1OOOIPyskLX9WyYSuAWqfyQCB0ZJZ8JFsTTgB_sNW8d4/edit?usp=sharing